ZGBriefs by Jon Kuert

After his first trip to China in 2001, Jon Kuert served as the director of AFC Global for seven years and was responsible for sending teams of students and volunteers to China and other parts of Asia. After that, he and his wife Elissa moved to Yunnan province where they lived for seven years. While in China, Jon taught English and led language and leadership hikes with university students. Together, he and Elissa also established a small business initiative to help rural Chinese women in difficult life situations. Currently, Jon lives in Minnesota and is the founder and director of Nihao MN, an international student organization dedicated to enriching the Chinese student experience through outdoor adventure and meals around the table.

ZGBriefs

ZGBriefs | May 16, 2024

China’s Chang’e 6 Moon Mission is a Game Changer (May 13, 2024, The Diplomat) China’s bid to return lunar samples from the far side of the Moon will have long-term strategic and geopolitical implications.

Jon Kuert ⋅ ⋅ May 16, 2024

ZGBriefs

ZGBriefs | May 9, 2024

Red Renaissance (May 6, 2024, China Media Project) In early February, Chinese media teemed with stories of cultural festivities in rural villages countrywide. In a “rural bookroom” in Xinjiang’s Ha’ermodun Village, a series of events “enriched the spiritual lives of villagers,” according to a local news release. More than 4,000 kilometers away, in Fujian’s Shuqiao Village, residents held a “Rural Spring Festival Gala” featuring song and dance performances. These and thousands of similar events across China’s vast rural hinterland are part of a concerted push to achieve what the Chinese Communist Party leadership has called the “revitalization of rural culture.”

Jon Kuert ⋅ ⋅ May 09, 2024